Aspiring UA filmmakers explored our deepest fears, insecurities, social issues and even a day in the life of an accomplished pooch in films of five minutes or less at the Campus MovieFest Finale, the culmination of an intense week of competitors creating short films for the competition.
Of 62 submissions CMF received, the top 16 moved on to the Finale to compete for the Director’s Chair trophies for Best Comedy, Best Drama and Best Picture. The winner of each category will continue to CMF Hollywood to screen against winners from other schools.
The title for Best Comedy went to “No Paper, No Plastic,” the adventures of a would-be mugger in training and his failed attempts to rob unsuspecting victims. Best Drama went to “Rise,” the story of a soldier’s struggle to make a life or death decision during combat. “Person-Able,” a commercial for a company that offers human services in the place of technology, took home the director’s chair for Best Picture.
This year’s CMF featured more dramas than previous years and the competition was stiff for Best Drama winner “Rise.” “Rise” producer Hunter Barcroft, a junior majoring in telecommunication and film, commended the competitors for their own contributions to the category.
“[The competition] was really tough, and, honestly, it was anybody’s game,” he said. “I’m completely blessed.”
“Person-Able” directors Cayce Savage, a junior majoring in psychology, and Leah Dunkel, a junior majoring in TCF and psychology, competed in CMF for the third time this year. Both of their previous submissions placed in the top 16, but this is their first submission to win.
Savage and Dunkel had the idea for “Person-Able” while returning home from last year’s Finale. They attributed their creative success to speaking in “British old lady voices” and the help of Corey Reeves and Jordan DeWitt.
“[Winning] feels wonderful. There were so many wonderful people and wonderful films,” Dunkel said. “I’ve wanted to go to [CMF Hollywood] and Casey’s wanted to go since we were freshmen.”
In addition to the director’s chairs for category winners, CMF also awarded Silver Tripods to the best actor and actress, best director and best cinematography. Chris Harding won Best Actor for his role in “Rise” and Best Actress went to Zoe Jones for her role in “Intruder.” Connor Simpson, a senior majoring in TCF, took home the Silver Tripod for Best Director for “Manta.” The Best Cinematography Silver Tripod went to “Filament.”
Best Director is not Simpson’s only CMF award. His previous submission won the Silver Tripod for Best Cinematography. Simpson was happy with the audience reaction to “Manta” and thinks the film is a step in the right direction for his career. “The crowd reaction was awesome,” Simpson said. “I want to keep trying to make stuff like that. I made what I wanted to make.”
While some films featured captivating effects and remarkable visual and sound quality, the relatively simplistic Best Comedy winner “No Paper, No Plastic,” proved that a creative and entertaining story is the key to winning CMF.
TCF major Christian Magadan and his crew got a late start creating their film, but their creativity paid off at the Finale, earning them a spot at CMF Hollywood.
“[Winning] is kind of mind-blowing. We got started a little bit late and we’re really glad at how everything turned out,” Magadan said. “No Paper, No Plastic” actor and TCF major Tanarius Hillaird, who played the incompetent mugger, was a crowd favorite. Hillaird said his comedic performance was just a matter of doing the script justice.
“It’s a great feeling knowing that everything you put your hard work into paid off and that people really appreciate it,” Hillaird said. “When I first saw the script I knew that this could really be funny, so I just wanted to do my job and make [the role] as great as possible.”
If you missed the competition, you can still view all the submissions, even those that did not screen at the finale, and help one film move on to compete in Hollywood alongside the category winners. The submission that receives the most views in the 30 days following the finale will be the Wildcard winner and join the Hollywood competition. You can view all the submissions at YouTube.com/campusmoviefest and see Alabama’s leaderboard at campusmoviefest.com/alabama. CMF promotions manager J.R. Hardman was highly impressed by all the submissions and was glad for the University’s competitors to be recognized for their talent on such a large scale.
“I don’t know how it’s possible that the movies get better and better every year. I’m so shocked and blown away by the incredible talent at this school and how many people recognize that,” Hardman said. “We’re just so proud of everyone and I think they’re really proud of themselves.”
Leading in today’s Crimson White:
Laughs, love story of ‘Warm Bodies’ revives otherwise lifeless zombie genre
UATD show features lighthearted adult humor
